Ghassan Zaqtan

Ghassan Zaqtan Poems

Ghassan Zaqtan Biography

Ghassan Zaqtan (Arabic: غسان زقطان‎) is a Palestinian poet, author of ten collections of poetry. He is also a novelist, editor. He was born in Beit Jala, near Bethlehem, and has lived in Jordan, Beirut, Damascus, and Tunis. His book “Like a Straw Bird it Follows me” translated by Fady Joudah was awarded the Griffin Poetry Prize , 2013. He is nominated among the short-listed award winners of the Neustadt International Prize for Literature 2014 / University of Oklahoma, perceived as the American Nobel Prize. In recognition of his achievement and contribution to Arabic and Palestinian literature, Ghassan Zaqtan was awarded the National Medal of Honor by the Palestinian president in June 2013. His name appeared for the first time in the fall of 2013 among the speculation list for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Ghassan Zaqtan’s work has been translated to English, French, Italian, Norwegian, German and other languages.

Ghassan Zaqtan Comments

The Best Poem Of Ghassan Zaqtan

Wolves

The birds' departure from his heart
leaves the plains white
where the story is white
and sleep is white
and silence is the caller's icon.
A laugh of sand will sprout when the door is opened
from fear's angle, a hymn
for the grand winter, and the voices
of those who left long ago will jump like grasshoppers
when the door is opened.
Wait, wait a moment
for us to dry a moment
there's in our trace
a reckless lament
and a ceramic bird …
and watch for the necklaces on the ceiling
Why don't you turn the lights on
or be happy with sitting
and watch for the fruits on the ground
Your voice in my room exhausts the silence
the silence of pots
the silence of shelves
the silence of writing
the silence of lighting
and the silence of survival
which I have been gathering for years
with the patience of one who's alone with the garden in summer
or one who retrieves absence
the absence
that never stops.